Friday, September 23, 2005

Fatlip: The Lonliest Punk is back!

Holy crap, I'm so excited about this! I know The Goon and Conan and Stray Bullets came out this week but even they can't compete with how psyched I am that Fat Lip has returned.

If you've ever listened to The Pharcyde, you know who I'm talking about, but if you've watched the Spike Jonze music videos DVD you know even better - several years ago, after being kicked out of The Pharcyde, he made a music video for a single called "What's Up Fatlip?", an awesome rap about being an "immature, insecure grown up nerd, has-been MC on a label that's unstable," the likes of which I'd never heard before. Rappers can be self-deprecating? They can talk about feeling low, and make it funny without the "just kidding, I'm a pimp" wink?

Seriously, I'd never heard anyone rap like that, and I loved it. His style was great, too - nice and old school. Great jangly beat. Then it seemed like he dropped off the face of the earth, and it was kinda depressing. Did he really give up like that? Did he really get chewed up and spit out like he feared?

Well, maybe for a while. I don't know what happened. But I do know that Pitchfork Media told me this:

Long-Delayed Fatlip Album Coming in November

Zach Vowell reports:Former Pharcyde MC Fatlip has been tantalizing us with rumors of a solo album for quite some time now. Such a record became even more necessary after a Fatlip-less Pharcyde lineup released a lackluster effort last year, the group's first record since 2000. Now, after years of scattered singles and months of moving-target release dates, Fatlip's label Delicious Vinyl has announced that the L.A.-based rapper's Theloneliest Punk LP will be released on November 1. The album’s 18 tracks include contributions from Jurassic 5's Chali 2na and from kindred P-funkin' soul Shock G/Humpty Hump of Digital Underground. The set will also include a bonus DVD featuring a Spike Jonze documentary covering Fatlip's life from his Pharcyde departure to the making of Theloneliest Punk. A nice gesture, sure-- we loved Jonze's video for "What's Up Fatlip?", in which Fatlip hung out with his mom and then got kicked in the nads by a small child-- but fans will likely only be appeased by hearing these songs: